A separate DAFF notice (19-2026) advises stakeholders of a shorter, four-hour service disruption on Wednesday 18 February, from 20:00 to 24:00 AEDT, affecting the Biosecurity Portal, the AAMP entry system and the BCST statistics tool.
For travellers and logistics coordinators seeking extra peace of mind, VisaHQ’s online platform (https://www.visahq.com/australia/) can streamline visa applications, biosecurity declarations and other entry documents ahead of departure, helping to reduce the impact of unexpected system outages like this one.
![Additional Service Disruption on 18 Feb Will Affect Cargo and Biosecurity Portals]()
Although labelled “routine maintenance,” the window coincides with peak mid-week freight movements and evening international arrivals. Forwarders using AAMP for electronic cargo clearance are urged to submit entries earlier in the day or risk consignments rolling to the next flight.
Travellers importing personal pets or high-risk food items that require on-arrival permits may also face manual inspection paperwork. DAFF says automatic e-mail acknowledgements will be queued and released once systems resume.
Because the outage is only four hours, airports will not activate contingency lanes, but corporate travel teams should alert employees returning late Wednesday that customs clearance could take longer than usual. Operators have asked DAFF to avoid overlapping outages, noting that the longer 21-22 February shutdown follows just three days later.
For travellers and logistics coordinators seeking extra peace of mind, VisaHQ’s online platform (https://www.visahq.com/australia/) can streamline visa applications, biosecurity declarations and other entry documents ahead of departure, helping to reduce the impact of unexpected system outages like this one.
Although labelled “routine maintenance,” the window coincides with peak mid-week freight movements and evening international arrivals. Forwarders using AAMP for electronic cargo clearance are urged to submit entries earlier in the day or risk consignments rolling to the next flight.
Travellers importing personal pets or high-risk food items that require on-arrival permits may also face manual inspection paperwork. DAFF says automatic e-mail acknowledgements will be queued and released once systems resume.
Because the outage is only four hours, airports will not activate contingency lanes, but corporate travel teams should alert employees returning late Wednesday that customs clearance could take longer than usual. Operators have asked DAFF to avoid overlapping outages, noting that the longer 21-22 February shutdown follows just three days later.
